Thursday, August 16, 2012

Astros receive Kevin Comer as Toronto's PTBNL

According to pitcher Joe Musgrove, who himself came to the Astros from Toronto, the Astros have acquired pitcher Kevin Comer to complete the ten-player trade. (Update: Confirmed by Keith Law)

Comer, 20 years old and a 6'3" 205lb RHP, was a Blue Jays 1st Supplemental Round pick (#57 overall) in 2011.

In ten games (seven starts) for Appalachian League Bluefield, Comer is 3-3 with a 3.95 ERA/1.18 WHIP, with 29K:8BB, 4HR in 43.1IP.

Comer was committed to Vanderbilt, but was a deadline over-slot signing by the Blue Jays for $1.65m. Within this link, Comer describes his pitching arsenal (it's a long interview, be sure to click the link):Right now what I’m working with is a four-seam, which I’ve been told has topped out at 94 MPH. Then I have a two-seam around 90-91 MPH that I’ve changed up over the summer and have moving more like a sinker now, and that’s been helping me out. I actually just developed a changeup over the winter, which is nice to have, and it’s really working well for me. It’s got a lot of drop on it and comes in around 82-83 MPH. Then I have a spike curveball as my last pitch, and that is normally my out pitch. I can throw it big and looping or hard, but most of the time I’m throwing it as hard as I can [laughs]. I’ll throw that anywhere from 76-80 MPH.

Quick note: In the linked Law tweet, he says Comer's velocity on his fastball is down to the upper-80s.

Comer is listed by MLB.com as the Blue Jays' 11th-ranked prospect: Pitching in the Northeast, he’s unpolished, but he does have a plus fastball, signs of a plus curve and even a feel for a changeup. The Blue Jays drafted a number of high-ceiling high school arms in the 2011 Draft, and Comer could end up being the best of the lot.

John Sickels writes:A cold-weather high school guy, he throws in the upper-80s currently, but scouts believe he will throw harder in time. His curveball and changeup have promise, and he's done a good job throwing strikes and keeping the ball down in his pro debut.

He'll move from Blueville to Greeneville, where he'll join old teammate Joe Musgrove, as well as Adrian Houser and Lance McCullers.

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